• The hack attack that takes your computer hostage till you pay

    The hack attack that takes your computer hostage till you pay

    Apr 18, 2015 10:10 PM EDT

    Ransomware, a type of software that computer hackers use to hold individuals' data hostage by blocking access to files unless they agree to pay a ransom, is on the rise. And because anyone with an internet connection is vulnerable, the problem highlights a growing threat that consumers face on both their personal computers and mobile...

  • Al-Shabab gunmen attack college in Kenya, take hostages

    Al-Shabab gunmen attack college in Kenya, take hostages

    Apr 02, 2015 06:08 PM EDT

    Gunmen with the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group stormed Garissa University College in eastern Kenya on Thursday, taking an unknown number of hostages from the dormitories and reportedly killing dozens. As many as 147 people were killed in the attack, the New York Times reported. According to earlier reports ...

  • Photos: Eerie remnants of the former U.S. embassy, 35 years after Iran hostage crisis

    Photos: Eerie remnants of the former U.S. embassy, 35 years after Iran hostage crisis

    Mar 02, 2015 11:24 PM EDT

    ... S. embassy in downtown Tehran, captured virtually every American working there, and began one of the worst diplomatic crises in American history. Though the 66 hostages were eventually released, the 14 month-long ordeal poisoned the already strained relations between the United States and Iran. The hostage crisis was a ...

  • What's the price of paying for hostages? The economics behind funding and fighting terrorism

    What's the price of paying for hostages? The economics behind funding and fighting terrorism

    Feb 20, 2015 12:45 AM EDT

    ... GWEN IFILL: One major element in the battle against terror is the threat to hostages and the demand for ransom. The U.S. government says paying for their release only feeds the money machine. Economics correspondent Paul Solman has been looking into how terrorism is financed, part of our ...

  • A mother demands better advocacy for U.S. hostages

    A mother demands better advocacy for U.S. hostages

    Feb 06, 2015 11:58 PM EDT

    ... would make a big difference? DEBRA TICE: Yes. They're talking about having a single point person who is a -- is focused entirely on the hostage and that unique situation, and that that person will look at American resources and assign them appropriately for the benefit of the hostage. And ...

  • Parents of U.S. hostage Austin Tice mount campaign to win his release

    Parents of U.S. hostage Austin Tice mount campaign to win his release

    Feb 06, 2015 11:55 PM EDT

    ... this week, pressing their case, even as Islamic State militants announced they'd burned a captive Jordanian pilot alive. They had already beheaded two Japanese hostages, as well as American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, and three aid workers, American Peter Kassig and David Haines and Alan Henning of ...

  • No proof yet of Islamic State claims about female hostage’s death

    No proof yet of Islamic State claims about female hostage’s death

    Feb 06, 2015 11:35 PM EDT

    ... JUDY WOODRUFF: Questions swirled today after Islamic State militants claimed an American aid worker is now a casualty of war. The militants said the hostage, Kayla Jean Mueller, died when Jordanian planes bombed this building in their stronghold of Raqqa in Syria. Jordan had stepped up the airstrikes after ...

  • Islamic State claims American hostage was killed by a Jordanian airstrike

    Islamic State claims American hostage was killed by a Jordanian airstrike

    Feb 06, 2015 05:48 PM EDT

    ... statement identified the hostage as 26-year-old aid worker Kayla Jean Mueller, according to the Associated Press. Reuters reports that Mueller, who was taken hostage from the northern Syrian city of Aleppo in August 2013, was the last-known American hostage held by Islamic State. On Tuesday, a video ...

  • ISIS videos often signal hostages' fate may be sealed

    ISIS videos often signal hostages' fate may be sealed

    Jan 31, 2015 11:51 PM EDT

    ... HARI SREENIVASAN, PBS NEWSHOUR WEEKEND ANCHOR: After days of negotiations for a prisoner exchange apparently broke down, ISIS today reportedly executed a Japanese journalist it had been holding hostage in Syria. Just last weekend, ISIS also beheaded another Japanese citizen it had captured. There was no immediate word about ...

  • Online video purports to show beheading of Japanese hostage

    Online video purports to show beheading of Japanese hostage

    Jan 31, 2015 09:07 PM EDT

    UPDATE: Japan's Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said Sunday the video posted online showing the apparent execution of hostage Kenji Goto by ISIS militants appears authentic, Reuters reported. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that Japan would work with other nations to bring those responsible for Goto's death to justice ...